Porcini Chicken With Wild Rice And Wheat Berries Recipes

Steps:

• Cook rice:
• Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, then add rice and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until rice is tender and grains are split open, 1 to 1 1/4 hours (not all liquid will be absorbed). Drain in a colander.
• Cook wheat berries while rice simmers:
• Bring remaining 4 cups water to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan, then stir in wheat berries and 1 1/4 cups porcini. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, over low heat until wheat berries are tender, 1 to 1 1/4 hours. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt and pour wheat berry mixture into a large sieve set over another saucepan or a skillet. Reserve wheat berries and porcini in a bowl and boil cooking liquid until reduced to about 1 cup, then add to wheat berry mixture. (Cut up any porcini that are large.)
• Cook chicken:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F.
• Grind remaining 3/4 cup porcini to a powder in coffee/spice grinder. (If porcini are too moist to grind, dry completely on a baking sheet in oven 3 to 5 minutes, then cool before grinding.)
• Pat chicken dry, then arrange in 1 layer on a sheet of wax paper. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and season with pepper. Put porcini powder in a fine mesh sieve and dust both sides of chicken generously, shaking off excess.
• Heat oil and 1/2 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then brown chicken in 2 batches, without crowding, turning over once, about 4 minutes per batch. Transfer chicken to a shallow baking dish as browned (reserve fat in skillet). Bake browned chicken until just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes, then let stand 5 minutes before slicing.
• While chicken bakes and stands, add remaining 1/2 tablespoon butter to fat in skillet and cook garlic over moderately low heat, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine and boil over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add wild rice, tomatoes, and wheat berry mixture (including reduced cooking liquid) and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Stir in dill and season with salt and pepper. Slice chicken and serve with rice mixture.
• *Available at natural foods store and specialty markets.

Steps:

• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F.
• Spread bread in 2 large shallow baking pans and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, stirring occasionally and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until dry, 20 to 25 minutes total. Transfer bread to a large bowl.
• Increase oven temperature to 450°F and butter a 13- by 9-inch baking dish (3-quart capacity).
• Pour boiling-hot water over porcini and soak 20 minutes, then drain in a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl, squeezing porcini and reserving soaking liquid. Rinse porcini under cold water to remove any grit, then squeeze out excess water and coarsely chop.
• While porcini soak, heat butter (1 stick) in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then cook white mushrooms, onion, and shallots, stirring occasionally, until golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Add celery, carrots, garlic, and porcini and cook, stirring, 5 minutes. Stir in thyme, sage, parsley, salt, and pepper, then add vegetables to bread, tossing to combine.
• Add 1 cup reserved porcini-soaking liquid to skillet and deglaze by boiling over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 1 minute. Add remaining soaking liquid and salt and pepper to taste and pour over bread mixture, tossing to coat evenly.
• Spread stuffing in baking dish and cover tightly with buttered foil (buttered side down), then bake in upper third of oven until heated through, about 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake stuffing until top is browned, 10 to 15 minutes more.

Steps:

• Place wheat berries in heavy medium saucepan. Add enough cold water to saucepan to cover wheat berries by 3 inches. Let stand overnight. Drain.
• Bring 4 cups water, wheat berries and 3/4 teaspoon salt to boil in same saucepan. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until wheat berries are tender but still slightly firm to bite, about 1 hour. Drain.
• Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add rice and garlic; stir 1 minute. Stir in remaining 1 3/4 cups water and 3/4 teaspoon salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until liquid is almost absorbed and rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Add spinach and cooked wheat berries; stir until spinach wilts and wheat berries are heated through, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.
• *Also called hard wheat berries. Available at most natural foods stores.
• **Available at Indian markets and many supermarkets.

Steps:

• In a small bowl soak porcini in boiling-hot water 20 to 30 minutes, or until softened. Slowly strain soaking liquid through a fine sieve lined with a coffee filter or a double thickness of rinsed and squeezed cheesecloth into a small saucepan, being careful to leave last tablespoon containing sediment in bowl. Boil soaking liquid until reduced to about 1/3 cup. Wash porcini under cold water to remove any grit and pat dry. Chop porcini coarse.
• Bring reduced porcini liquid to a boil with cold water, salt, and rice and simmer, covered, 45 to 50 minutes, or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. (If rice is tender before liquid is absorbed drain in a colander.) Transfer rice to a serving bowl and keep warm, covered.
• In a heavy skillet cook fennel, onion, and mushrooms in butter over moderate heat, stirring, until fennel is tender, about 10 minutes. Add fennel mixture to rice and toss to combine. Rice may be made 3 hours ahead and kept covered at room temperature. Reheat rice in skillet, adding water to prevent it from sticking to skillet.